UK's FSA Fines UBS for Unauthorized Trading That Lost $2.3 Billion

The U.K.'s Financial Services Authority has fined UBS (NYS: UBS) 29.7 million pounds ($47.6 million) over a former employee's unauthorized trading activities, the regulator announced today. That employee, Kweku Adoboli, was recently found guilty of fraud and sentenced to seven years in prison. UBS says Adoboli's unauthorized actions in 2011 led to $2.3 billion in losses.

The FSA imposed the fine because it believes that UBS "failed to take reasonable care to organise and control its affairs responsibly and effectively, with adequate risk management systems and failed to conduct its business from the London Branch with due skill, care and diligence."

Additionally FINMA, the FSA's counterpart in UBS' home market of Switzerland, detailed several actions it would take to supervise the bank. These include the appointment of an independent investigator to monitor the "corrective measures" UBS is taking to prevent another such incident.

The bank will not contest the requirements of either regulator, saying in a statement that it "accept[s] their findings and the penalties incurred."